Dr. Janelle Ashley, the 10th president of Worcester State
College, became the first woman president in the school’s
133-year history when she assumed the helm in 2002.
Worcester State College continues to flourish under her leadership.
The Princeton Review designated Worcester State College
a “Best Northeastern College” for the past three consecutive
years and as an “America’s Best Value College” for the past
two years in a row. Worcester State College continues to meet
the needs of students through new program development including
a new criminal justice major, a School Psychologist
C.A.G.S. (Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies), a new
3+ 3 agreement with Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and
Health Sciences (MCPHS) which allows WSC students to
transfer to MCPHS after three years and complete a Doctor of
Pharmacy degree in three additional years. Prior to her tenure
at Worcester State College, she served as Vice President for
Academic Affairs at Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) in
Nacogdoches, Texas. She received a Ph.D. in management from
the University of North Texas in Denton, as well as an M.A. in
English and a B.B.A. in Business Administration from Stephen
F. Austin State University.

First Lieutenant Mark A. Bennett is the Director of
Education and Incentive Programs for the Massachusetts Army
National Guard assigned to the Joint Force Headquarters located
in Milford, Massachusetts. As State Director, he functions
as the program administrator for all state and federal education
programs for the Massachusetts Army National Guard’s
6,000 soldiers. Lieutenant Bennett is an Operation Iraqi
Freedom combat veteran and is currently assigned through
the National Guard to Detachment 1, Charlie Company, 3rd
Battalion, 126th Aviation Regiment (Air Ambulance) as a
HH-60 Blackhawk Aeromedical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) Pilot.

Tom Coleman currently serves as the Education Liaison
Representative for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
His primary responsibility is to act as liaison to schools and
colleges in the Commonwealth. Tom served in the U.S. Coast
Guard from 1970 to 1976. In 1985, he began his career with
Veterans Affairs in the Compensation and Pension division.
In 2005 he transitioned to his current position. Tom has a
bachelor’s degree in English and history from the University of
Massachusetts Boston.

James Crosby is an Operation Iraqi Freedom Marine Corps
Veteran and a recipient of the Purple Heart. James served a
total of two years in the Marine Corps until he was medically
retired due to wounds received in Iraq in 2004 from a
rocket attack at Al Asad Airbase. James is now an employee
of the Massachusetts Department of Veterans’ Services as the
Director of Outreach. His primary responsibility is locating
the Commonwealth’s returning Operation Iraqi Freedom and
Operation Enduring Freedom veterans to welcome them home
and assist them with claims and readjustment issues.

Dawn Distasio is Coordinator of Outreach and
Administrative Support for Veterans Education for the
Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. Having
family members that have served in the military, Dawn has
always been a strong supporter of veterans. After graduating
from Mount Holyoke College in 2004, she came directly
to the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education as an
Administrative Assistant for Veterans Education. She became
committed to outreach after hearing from many veterans that
they were unaware of the education benefits to which they were
entitled. In her current position, she ensures that veterans have
access to information on the benefits owed to them for their
service to the country.

John Ebuen is the Program Specialist for Veterans Education
for the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. His
primary role is to assist in performing supervisory site visits
at over 200 approved institutions of higher learning and
non-college degree programs in Massachusetts. Prior to this
position, he served on active duty for three years in the U.S.
Air Force. As a Project Engineer at Hanscom Air Force Base in
Massachusetts, John managed various projects for the Missile
Defense Agency. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in
Electrical Engineering from the University of South Florida.

Samuel Hamm is Outreach Coordinator for the
Massachusetts Department of Veterans’ Services. After graduating
from high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was
stationed onboard the U.S.S. Kearsarge. While on board the
Kearsarge, Sam was part of Operation Deny Flight, Operation
Guardian Retrieval, and Operation Noble Obelisk. After the
Navy, Sam worked at the Greenwood School, where he taught
mathematics, remedial reading, and remedial writing classes,
followed by the Boston Language Institute and the Boston
Academy of English, where he taught English.

William (Bill) Leamy currently works for the Department of
Veterans’ Services as Training and Compliance and Authorizer.
He is a Retired Air Force disabled, Vietnam veteran. He has
held various positions as a veteran advocate, including a position
with the Department of Employment and Training where
he served as a Veterans’ Employment Representative. He is also
a former Veterans’ Service Office for the City of Weymouth.

Gail Cavanaugh-McAuliffe is the paralegal for the
Department of Veterans’ Services. She is a United States Army
Signal Corps veteran who served stateside during the Persian
Gulf War. She is a former employee of the Veterans’ Northeast
Outreach Center in Haverhill where she worked with homeless
veterans. During her employment, she has worked to bring veterans’
education issues to the forefront. She is continuing her
education at the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

Kathleen Mack is Program Coordinator for the Massachusetts
Department of Workforce Development Division of Career
Services. Her primary responsibility is to manage a Veterans’
Workforce Investment Program (VWIP) grant designed to offset
the costs associated with training and/or education that
will enable a veteran to obtain employment. She has a strong
background in creating and delivering workshops with a focus
on job search techniques, including transitioning military
personnel at Hanscom Air Force Base and Fort Devens. She is
a graduate of Lesley University and holds several designations
which support the career-advising industry.

George O’Connor is the Director for Veterans Education for
the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. George
began his career with Massachusetts Department of Higher
Education in 2001, managing the No-Interest Loan Program
for the Office of Student Financial Assistance. In 2004, he began
his work with veterans as Associate Director for Veterans
Education, and in 2008, he moved to the Director position.
George received his B.S. in Business Administration from
Northeastern University and his MBA from Suffolk University.

Marybeth O’Sullivan is a Registered Nurse by profession
and a Commander in the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps by commission.
She is the Outreach Advisor for Veterans Upward Bound
at the University of Massachusetts in Boston, a free, federally
funded pre-collegiate program designed to prepare veterans to
return to post-secondary education. As the Outreach Advisor,
Marybeth met with many military personnel prior to their deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan and once again as they
returned to the civilian sector. During this time, she observed
specific behaviors and difficulties within the combat-veteran
population, particularly as they returned to the classroom.
She combined her clinical skills and knowledge base of PTSD
and mTBI to show how these unseen wounds of war affect
adult learning. She has spoken nationally on this subject, to
educators, healthcare professionals, and the general public.
Marybeth is a member of the National Coalition for Homeless
Veterans and serves on several state veteran boards and many
national and local organizations.

Charles Pace is the Department of Veterans Affairs Education
Liaison Representative for the State of Rhode Island. He is a
retired United States Navy veteran who served 20 years before
retiring and moving on to the training and education
fields. Prior to his position at the VA, Charley also served as
the Director for Veterans Education for the Massachusetts
Department of Higher Education for several years. His leadership,
skills and commitment to veterans established a high
standard of services provided to Veterans within the state.
Charley holds a Bachelor’s degree from Chaminade University
of Honolulu and a Master’s degree in Human Resource
Development and Management from Webster University.

Shelley Tinkham is the Associate Director for Academic Policy
at the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education. She has special responsibility in the areas of K-16 coordination and
planning, veterans’ education, and special projects and initiatives
that support college readiness and success for traditionally
unrepresented groups of students. She provides leadership
for the Department’s School-to-College initiative and interacts
with representatives from a cross-section of public K-12 and
public higher education institutions and agencies to determine
strategies for the development, dissemination and interpretation
of the School-to-College Report. She holds an undergraduate
degree from Kent State University and graduate degrees
from Boston University and the University of Massachusetts
Boston and is working towards a Ph.D. in Public Policy at the
University of Massachusetts Boston.